I’m a lifelong Doctor Who fan – like Peter Davison/ Colin Baker lifelong fan. So, when John Barrowman’s name came up for this part… I basically laid out the plan that we had for his character, and who he is and how he relates to everybody and what’s going on, because we didn’t have a lot written.

I said, ‘So, I guess I’m asking you to take a leap of faith’. He said, ‘It’s funny, seven years ago, Russell T Davies told me to take a leap of faith with him, and I hear your passion and creativity the way I heard his. So, let’s do it!’ That was the best phone call I’ve ever gotten.”

Kreisberg also praised Barrowman’s versatility and promises a ‘completely different’ role to that of Captain Jack Harkness:

He’s just such a tremendously talented actor, and [his casting is] one of the things we’re most proud of with the show.

Continuing the Barrowman love in, fellow producer Marc Guggenheim also praised Barrowman, calling him ‘incredibly magnetic and incredibly charming’ and that he hadn’t seen Torchwood before casting him in the role.

I come to his performance on my own terms. [John] lights up the screen and he really energises the actors that he has scenes with.

Arrow airs on Wednesday nights at 8/7c on The CW and will debut on Sky One in the UK on October 22.

Andrew has left Kasterborous. Any article that appears on the site past February 2016 claiming to be written by Andrew Reynolds has been done so maliciously and without the authors consent. The author does not condone gambling in any form and would not seek to publicise the industry through a children's television show. If you like Doctor Who articles without a hefty dose of identity theft and gambling spam, why not check out http://thedoctorwhocompanion.com/